Echoes of 2003 resounded through parts of West Kelowna on Saturday as a major interface fire tore through neighbourhoods, burned houses and forced the evacuation of more than 4,000 homes.
Sirens wailed and distraught residents screamed at police as strong northwesterly winds buffeted flames above the Gorman Bros. Lumber mill off Gates Road in Glenrosa.
Candling trees that ignited in the heavily forested area before 3 p.m. quickly blew into a 200-hectare inferno, forcing hundreds of residents on Turnbull, Gates and McIver roads and the Belcourt subdivision to flee for their lives with little notice.
Police said “quite a few” houses burned in Upper Glenrosa. At least two houses on Gates Road were gutted, said resident James Janson. His father walked to a neighbour‘s house to watch it burn because he‘d built it 10 years ago, he said.
“It‘s because he put so much into it,” Janson said.
A crew of 20 Gorman Bros. employees hosed the tree-lined perimeter of the upper log yard to keep the rank-six flames at bay. Two houses owned by Ron and Ross Gorman on the sawmill site burned within two hours. All that was left standing of Ron‘s house was a brick chimney, said neighbour Chris Ritchie.
Jonathan Arkle, a five-year Gorman‘s employee, completed the Cross the Lake swim Saturday morning, performed in a play and helped protect the mill, its piles of lumber and equipment.
“I don‘t know if we‘ll be able to save it,” Arkle said at 5 p.m.
One of the kilns on the mill site later burned down.
Despite steady water bucketing from six helicopters and up to four air tankers, the fire jumped across Glenrosa Road, sparking grass fires and torching cedar hedges as residents doused their roofs with garden hoses. At least one house reportedly burned.
Steve Lee gripped a large bird cage holding an African parrot in the back of a pickup as his wife, Wendy, drove slowly down Weddell Place. He left his sprinkler going on the roof.
“Omigod. Flames are going toward our house,” said Wendy. “I don‘t know if the neighbours got their dogs out.”
A pet and animal rescue centre was set up at the Cherry Pit Restaurant in downtown Westbank.
The hot, dry winds gusted to 40 km/h and stronger. They shifted, causing fire crews to realign their equipment. Police ordered more evacuations, telling people in Lower Glenrosa to leave immediately.
Dozens of officers worked frantically to get people out of their homes. Some of the residents were invalids. Many refused to go.
Embers touched off another fire on the south side of Highway 97, forcing more evacuations. Residents of Gellatly Road, Seclusion Bay, Whitworth Road and Goats Peak were evacuated after 6 p.m.
Hundreds of residents of The Cove resort and guests at West Kelowna Holiday Inn were ordered out.
Blair Balehowsky was evacuated from his home at 3801 Gellatly after 7 p.m. He believes one house burned on Gellatly.
“I‘m driving to Westbank to see if my home will go up or not,” he said.
Angus Drive residents Lorraine and Walter Hoodicoff packed up their tent trailer and prepared to spend the night somewhere else.
“I called my parents and told them to leave. They‘re behind Save On Foods,” Lorraine said. “Traffic is huge.”
Evacuees were told to report to the Emergency Evacuation Reception Centre at Royal LePage Place, 2760 Cameron Rd., and at Mt. Boucherie Secondary School. They can also call 778-797-2269. Volunteers were calling for pillows and mattresses.
Police closed Highway 97 south of the area and the Okanagan Connector. They cordoned off Glenrosa Road soon after the fire started.
Upset residents trying to reach their homes yelled at officers, demanding access. Police allowed those with children and frail elderly relatives still at home to pass the yellow tape.
Firefighters from West Kelowna, Peachland, Kelowna and the BC Forest Service worked well into the night to tame the inferno. Top of Page
